Liverpool target Frimpong's farewell message as boss left 'let down' by exit

Jeremie Frimpong has been strongly linked with Liverpool as a replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold and will hope to leave Bayer Leverkusen on a good note after leaving his former club frustrated

Jeremie Frimpong could soon be bidding farewell to Bayer Leverkusen, with Liverpool keen on a deal for the right-back. Talks have reportedly commenced as the Reds mull over whether to trigger a release clause written into his contract.

The 24-year-old will certainly be aiming to depart Germany on a positive footing having previously left his former club Celtic under a cloud. After shining for the Scottish giants, he left in January 2021.

He had been offered a new contract to stay at Celtic Park but decided to reject to pursue his switch to the Bundesliga in a deal worth a reported £11.5m. Despite that fee, then Celtic boss Neil Lennon was not best pleased.

Speaking at the time, he said: “Yes, I feel a bit let down because we felt we could progress him further and we offered him a new deal which would have kept him here for another two or three years but it was down to the player’s personal ambition.

“Whether that’s the right way for him remains to be seen. For us, though, from a business point of view - and maybe from a footballing point of view as well - when a player’s mind is set like that it’s very difficult to bring him back round.

“It didn’t come as a surprise at all. This has been in the offing for the past couple of months. We offered the player talks for a new deal a few months back but he declined and made it clear that he wanted to leave, despite our best efforts to keep him.

“We’ve received a very robust offer for him and, after talking about it at length, we think it’s the best thing for the club going forward. Obviously, we’re now looking to bring in a right-back to play in that position.”

To his credit, Frimpong expressed his deep affection for Celtic and explained his reasons for pursuing an exit in his farewell message. Writing on social media, he said: "I wanna thank all my team-mates for their help, the gaffer for his trust and the Celtic fans for their love. I will forever be grateful to Celtic and I wish you all the best for the future.

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“This is a great opportunity to play in one of the best European leagues. I'm really excited about the Bundesliga and especially about this club.

“Bayer Leverkusen recently played regularly in the Champions League and the Europa League. They showed how ambitious they are internationally, not least in the two games against Rangers last year. I really like the offensive, fast and technical way of playing and I hope that I can help the team soon."